Adding Value to medical devices

To create the Breastlight home-use device for self-examinations, Scotland's PWB Health Ltd, selected Cycoloy* PC/ABS HC resin for the housing components. Cycoloy resin, which is assessed to ISO 10993 standard for biocompatibility, offers excellent impact resistance for durability and high flow for thin-wall molding. It also has the ability to incorporate special opacifiers without deteriorating mechanical properties. For the lens, Sabic Innovative Plastics' Lexan HP polycarbonate resin was selected for its optical clarity, impact strength and the ability to be ultrasonically welded to the housing. This grade is also assessed for biocompatibility in accordance with the ISO 10993 standard. ABS-bondable grade of Medalist&#reg; medical lastomer from Teknor Apex Co. provides required level of rubber-like performance and is pre-tested for regulatory compliance . Medalist&#reg; plays a key role in a device that simplifies the delicate and often complicated deployment of catheters and guide wires for interventionalist procedures, which are less invasive alternatives to surgery. Interventionalist methods, such as the placement of stents to open blocked arteries, typically require the insertion of catheters with guide wires into blood vessels and may involve more than one pair of these devices, as in the case of blockages in both main and branch arteries. The Teirstein Edge™ device, developed by Paul S. Teirstein, M.D., lets interventionalists organise catheters and guide wires at a site just prior to insertion of the wires into the catheters, keeping them neatly separated and readily identifiable while allowing precise control of their movement during procedures. The device incorporates clips for attachment to surgical towels and has a curved underside that enables it to lie on a flat surface or over a patient's leg. Cantel Medical Corp. has made a strategic investment in Biosafe, Inc. and plans to incorporate the Biosafe antimicrobial additive in a number of products. The first product to be commercialised is the Ultra Sensitive Face Mask from Cantel's Crosstex International division, which is introducing the mask in selected markets outside the United States. The Biosafe-treated mask is effective against H1N1 ("swine flu") and other Influenza A viruses, plus a wide range of other microorganisms, including MRSA bacteria, a chief cause of cross-infection in hospitals and schools. The company cites tests demonstrating that the new mask killed 98.500 to 99.999% of trapped viruses and bacteria within five minutes of contact.Mercurial Superfly Heritage FG